"I have avoided letting the doctor dilate my eyes in my annual exam for the past three years. The reason is that I cannot go back to work with dilated eyes and be productive. What is the purpose of having the eyes dilated, and am I doing myself a disservice by refusing to let the doctor
"Has technology improved in other areas so that dilating is no longer an absolute necessity?' "I am worried that I let it go for so long."
The benefit of having your eyes dilated is the improved view and evaluation of your retina, the retinal vascular supply, and the optic nerve that your eye doctor can get due to the dilation. Your optometrist has a difficult job, examining the back of your eye, due to the extremely small window that he or she is forced to look through. The dilation causes this window to open greatly, allowing for improved visualization of the back part of the eye. If you have had new or troublesome symptoms or are going to see your eye doctor as part of diabetes management, for example, it may be imperative that your doctor examine the back of your eye. This part of the examination allows for earlier diagnosis and intervention of problems that may be happening or starting in this area. The OPTOMAP IS THE BEST alternative to dilation which we offer here at Wilken Family Eye Care, which saves both time and the side effects of the dilation (blurred vision and light sensitivity for several hours afterwards Each patient is different, and the absolute need for dilating your eyes may be different for you than for a different patient. Now, with the addition of the iWellness exam included with the Optomap, there has never been a better way to evaluate and diagnose Glaucoma and macular degenration in a screening test. Please speak with one of us if you still have questions.